Dismissal Hearing Procedures

If the President determines to undertake dismissal proceedings, the proceedings shall be governed by the following provisions:

A. The faculty member shall have the right to a hearing before an ad hoc faculty hearing committee appointed by, but not from, the Grievance Committee in consultation with the President. Service of notice of the hearing with the specific charges in writing shall be made at least 20 working days prior to the hearing.

B. Members deemed disqualified for bias or interest may remove themselves from the case, or may be removed at the request of either party, disqualification to be determined by the remaining members of the committee.

C. The faculty member may waive a hearing or may respond to the charges in writing at any time before the hearing. If the faculty member waives a hearing, but denies the charges against him/her, or asserts that the charges do not support a finding of adequate cause, the hearing committee shall evaluate all available evidence and rest its recommendation upon the evidence in the record.

D. The hearing committee may hold joint pre-hearing meetings with the parties in order to simplify the issues, effect stipulations of facts, provide for the exchange of documentary or other information, and achieve such other appropriate pre-hearing objectives as will make the hearing fair, effective, and expeditious.

E. The hearing shall be public or private, in accordance with the faculty member's wishes. If the faculty member declines to express a preference, the committee shall exercise its judgment as to whether the hearing should be public or private.

F. The burden of proof that adequate cause for termination or dismissal exists rests with the university.

G. During the proceedings the faculty member shall be permitted to have an academic adviser or counsel of his/her own choice. At the request of either party or the hearing committee, a representative of an appropriate educational association shall be permitted to attend the proceedings as an observer.

H. An accurate record of the hearing or hearings shall be taken and the official transcript shall be made available to the faculty member, without cost, at the faculty member's request.

I. The hearing committee shall grant adjournments to enable either party to investigate evidence about which a valid claim of surprise is made.

J. The faculty member shall be afforded an opportunity to obtain necessary witnesses and documentary or other evidence. The administration shall cooperate with the hearing committee in securing witnesses and in making available documentary and other evidence.

K. The faculty member and the dean, department chair, and university officers involved with the dismissal proceedings shall have the right to confront and cross-examine all witnesses. Where those witnesses cannot or will not appear, but the committee determines that the interests of justice require admission of their statements, the committee shall identify the witnesses, disclose their statements, and if possible provide for interrogatories.

L. In the hearing of charges of professional incompetence, the testimony shall include that of qualified faculty members from this or other institutions of higher education.

M. The hearing committee shall not be bound by strict rules of legal evidence, and may admit any evidence that is of probative value in determining the issues involved. Every reasonable effort shall be made to obtain the most reliable evidence available.

N. The findings of fact and the decision of the committee shall be based solely on the hearing record.

O. Except for such simple announcements as may be required, covering the time of the hearing and similar matters, public statements and publicity about the proceedings by either the faculty member or administrative officers shall be avoided as far as possible until the proceedings have been completed.

P. Pending a final decision by the hearing committee, the faculty member shall be suspended, or assigned to other duties in lieu of suspension, only if immediate harm to himself/herself or others is threatened by his/her continuance. Before suspending a faculty member, and pending an ultimate determination of his/her status through the institution's hearing procedures, the administration shall consult with the Grievance Committee concerning the propriety, the length, and other conditions of the suspension. A suspension that is intended to be final is a dismissal and shall be treated as such. Except in extreme circumstances, the salary of the faculty member shall be continued during the period of suspension.

Q. If the hearing committee concludes that the case for dismissal has not been justified by the evidence in the record, it shall so report to the President. If the committee concludes that the case for dismissal has been established, it shall recommend either dismissal or, if it believes it more appropriate, a lesser academic penalty. In the latter case, it shall provide supporting reasons for its judgment.